Peter Macfarlane recommends the Mountain Equipment Firelite sleeping bag for its lofting capabilities and light weight.

The Mountain Equipment Firelite is a light sleeping bag which appeared in our guide to the best sleeping bags for hiking. It maintains great performance at a low weight by using very high-quality down and a very light shell fabric. When unpacked the bag lofts very well and once inside the feedback against bare skin is very fast.

  • Price: $700 / £500 (Buy now from Alpine Trek)
  • Weight: 1.68 lb. / 764g (Regular)
  • Materials: 900 fill power ethically certificated goose down, nylon shell

Temperature comfort limit: 16°F / – 9°C | Features: slant box wall construction, mummy shape, stretch seams, full-length two-way zip, shoulder baffle, stuff sack and storage sack | Sizes: regular, long | Women’s version: yes

The shape is a relaxed mummy with quite a neat upper body and good room for your feet. Comfort is helped by the EXL system, which consists of stretch inner seams allowing the down baffles to conform closer to your body shape and which also feels like it allows some extra arm movement despite the neater upper body shape.

The hood is quite neat but well-shaped and cinches in with an external drawcord. The chest baffle is cinched in just below my chin with an internal drawcord, which allows the back and front to be separately adjusted.

This works very well and is comfortable. The main zip snags frequently so can require some patience to use but it’s easily enough operated from inside the bag.

The weight and consequent small pack size make the Firelite a good choice for longer distances and high camps outside of winter, but the performance comes at a cost with the highest price tag in the men’s review.

Shell fabric water resistance is excellent, and it resists wetting out very well, making the Firelite a good choice for small tents where condensation transfer to the bag from the tent skin to the bag is unavoidable.

Discover more of the best sleeping bags for men as tested by The Great Outdoors gear expert Peter Macfarlane.